These Free Places

The trails. The lakes. The courses. The track. Places of paces. Endless dripping sweat. Cutting through the wind half the time. Beeps sounding from watches glued to the wrists of dedicated souls fighting to be something...do something...learn something. Places of pain and heavy breathing. Places where encouragement flies in every direction and seeps into the racing heart. Where lungs are trained to work hard more than daily, where legs are trained to burn and push through it, where minds are trained to finish and finish strong no matter what it takes. Where hearts fall in love with these realities.

The trails. The lakes. The courses. The track. Places where I watch Jesus run hard to show me how it's done. Places where I can fully breathe and know that I am safe. Where lessons are found around each tree, each hill, each lap, with each step. Hard work, fierce determination, and God's grace are learned here. And Jesus' suffering. The wind speaks to me as I push through it's resistance. Lessons of life with each mental push. 

The trails. The lakes. The courses. The track. Where God and I talk without hesitance. Where I am free. Free to run with my Creator. Free to worship Him. Free of my fears. Free of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Free to give all I've got. Free to pour myself out for Him. Free of worries and hopes. Free of pain and mistakes. Completely free to run.

The trails. The lakes. The courses. The track. Places of rest. Places to think...to wonder...to dream...to explore. Quietness is accepted and rain is invited. Where minds clear, frustrations calm down, and doubts don't matter. Where allowing God to carry me isn't easy, but for some reason, so much more possible for me to allow. Places where God is able to take my flooded thoughts and make sense of them. Where I become vulnerable enough to allow Jesus to change me. Where it's quiet enough for me to truly listen to His still, small Voice. 

The trails. The lakes. The courses. The track. These are the places I want to be. These are the places I want to cherish. These are the places I want to stay. These are the places where I find Christ.


The heavens tell of the glory of God. 
The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship.
Day after day they continue to speak;
night after night they make him known.
They speak without a sound or a word;
their voice is silent in the skies;
yet their message has gone out to all the earth, 
and their words to all the world.

The sun lives in the heavens where God placed it. 
It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding. 
It rejoices like a great athlete eager to run the race. 

Psalm 19:1-4